(Public Pack)Agenda Document for Schools Forum, 08/03 ...

For further information relating to schools forum, please contact:

Roger Hughes, Chair, [email protected]

Rachael Williams, Head of Education, Learning & Skills, [email protected]

Mike Freeman, Clerk, [email protected]

Schools Forum Meeting Agenda

Thursday, 8 March 2018 at 9.00 am

to be held in Mezzanine Room 3 - Tor Hill House, Union Street, Torquay, TQ2 5QW This meeting is scheduled to last 2 – 2.5 hours

Membership

Roger Hughes (Chair & Primary Maintained Head)

Stewart Biddles (Primary Maintained head)

Maurice Codd (Primary Maintained Governor)

Dan Hallam (Post 16)

Adam Morris (Primary Maintained Head)

Lindsey Kings (Secondary Academy Deputy Head)

Tim Stephens (Primary Academy Governor)

Jayne Jones (Early Years)

Mike Lock (Vice Chair & Special Academy Head)

Daneian Rees (Secondary Maintained Head)

Clive Star (Secondary Academy Governor)

Jan Chopping (Secondary Academy Governor)

Jim Piper (Primary Academy Head)

Steven Hulme (PRU Head)

Lisa Finn (Secondary Academy Rep)

1. Apologies/Changes to Membership

2. Minutes of the last meeting

(Pages 3 - 8)

3. Matters arising Early Years Census Plan – Rachael Williams

4. Financial Report (Pages 9 - 15) Rachael Williams

To include a specific item on funding for special schools 2018/19

5. Higher Needs Recovery Group (Pages 16 - 17) Andy Dempsey/Rachael Williams

6. Update on ALFEY funds (Pages 18 - 20) Rachael Williams

7. Report on High Cost pupils (Pages 21 - 23) Dorothy Hadleigh

8. Permanent Exclusion Data (Pages 24 - 28) Dan Hamer

9. Recoupment Presentation Dan Hamer

10. Verbal update on Plymouth Partnership Andy Dempsey

mailto:[email protected]


For further information relating to schools forum, please contact:

Roger Hughes, Chair, [email protected]

Rachael Williams, Head of Education, Learning & Skills, [email protected]

Mike Freeman, Clerk, [email protected]

11. Post Audit Action Plan (9) Roger Hughes

12. Items for next meeting Financial report

High Needs Recovery Group Annual Review of school representation IOSS monitoring report

13. Future meeting dates 14th June 2018, 09:00, Mezzanine Room 4, Tor Hill House

11th October 2018, 09:00, Mezzanine Room 4, Tor Hill House 29th November 2018, Venue TBA 17th January 2019, Venue TBA 7th March 2019, Venue TBA



Schools Forum Thursday, 18 January 2018

For further information on Schools Forum, please contact Roger Hughes, Chair,

[email protected] or Rachael Williams, Head of Education, Learning & Skills [email protected]

Minutes of the Schools Forum 18 January 2018

-: Present :-

Roger Hughes (Chairman), Mike Lock (Vice Chair), Adam Morris (Primary Maintained

Head), Maurice Codd (Primary Maintained Gov), Claire Shiers (Primary Academy Representative –Replacement for Stewart Biddles), Danieian Rees (Secondary

Maintained Rep), Lindsey Kings (Secondary Academy Deputy Head), Lisa Finn (Secondary Academy Rep), Julie Chubb (Secondary Academy Gov Rep, Replacement

for Clive Star), Jan Chopping (Secondary Academy Gov), Dan Hallam (Post 16)

Andy Dempsey (Director of Children’s Services), Rachael Williams (Head of Education, Learning & Skills), Dan Hamer (Head of Vulnerable Pupils) Rob Parr (Principal Accountant)

and Michael Freeman (Clerk)

1. Apologies/Changes to Membership

Apologies were received from Martin Phillips and Jim Piper. Julie Chubb attended in place of Clive Starr, and Claire Shiers attended in place of Stewart Biddles. The Forum welcomed Dan Hamer, Head of Vulnerable Pupils, to his first meeting.

2. Minutes of the last meeting Minutes were agreed as a true record of the meeting. However, members requested a greater level of detail in the recording of minutes, as it is felt that the wider constituency of schools not present at the meeting would need a full appreciation of the items discussed detailed and as such these should be minuted with greater clarity.

3. Matters arising Proposed meeting dates were discussed by members. It is felt that there is too big a gap between the March and July meetings, the proposal to bring July’s meeting forward to the 14th June was agreed by all. Representatives from both the Early Years sector and a Primary Governor are still being sought. It is anticipated that an Early Years rep will be in place before the March Forum. Update from Funding and Resources meeting, Item 8 of November minutes – A full consultation has not gone out to schools, recommendations from the meeting will be discussed in item 6 of today’s agenda. Members requested that schools will be

Agenda Item 2


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given the complete rationale when the consultation goes out, i.e. not just the figures but the reasoning behind them. Update from Item 12 of Novembers agenda, Report on Audit – Minutes of Forums are now circulated to all Headteachers, it has been requested that Heads circulate these to Governors when possible.

4. Financial Report Members were shown a detailed breakdown of the Local Area’s current financial position. The outturn position remains fairly static, due to the short time period since the last meeting. DSG funded activities are currently forecast to overspend by £1.271m. However, the decision of Forum to vire £364K from next year's funding will reduce this figure. The two greatest pressures continue to be from the Early Years and the Higher Needs Blocks. Limited information on the Early Years Block is available, due to a census taking place at present, however the overspend has been reduced by £30k. Rachael Williams is currently in discussion with the DfE and other local authorities, and making representation to the DfE on the benefit of moving to a termly census of Early Years data. The outcomes of a meeting to be held on 1st March with the DfE will be discussed at the next Forum. Budget pressure on the Higher Needs block is projected at £1.136m. This is largely due to the continued growth of Requests for Statutory Assessments, with a further 80 currently in process, and the demand for specialist school placements. The Higher Needs Recovery Group will continue to work on next year’s projections. The Forum notes the work of the SEN team in ceasing a number of plans where pupils are no longer engaging, and the small savings made as a result of this. Work is also ongoing on permanent exclusion procedures. Dan Hamer, Head of Vulnerable Pupils, will now be taking a lead on this. Reserve funds are unchanged from October 2017. DSG allocations for this year and next were shown to members, it was noted that an increase in funding for the schools block of £2.380m would help to achieve a more equitable funding position. Members noted the current financial position and agree to continue to work with the Local Authority on finding a solution for the projected overspend. It is requested that more detail is provided on overspend, as Governors/Heads outside of the Forum won’t know why figures are so high. Action – Dan Hamer to report to March Forum on Excluded pupils. Action – Rachael Williams to ask for written confirmation from DfE

on Early Years Census plans.


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Action – Rob Parr to provide further details on overspend, and to update budget table with additional column showing actual spend.

5. Higher Needs Recovery plan As agreed at November Forum, a Working Party for the Higher Needs Financial Recovery Plan will be established. Members were asked to comment on a draft Terms of Reference, which outlines the proposed remit of the Working Party. Membership of the Working party will be amended to include one Post 16 Representative, and three SEND steering group representatives (one each from the Primary, Secondary and Early Years sectors). It was also felt that the representative for Health should be a senior colleague. With regards to the chairing arrangements, Members wished to clarify that an elected Chairperson must come from the education sector and be elected at the first meeting. Action - Terms of Reference will be updated to reflect today’s

discussion. Action – Rachael Williams to seek representatives and propose

meeting dates. Action – Rachael Williams & Andy Dempsey to contact Simon

Tapley (CCG) to request senior health colleague involvement.

6. Response to National Fair Funding Task and Finish Group As a result of discussions at previous Schools Forum, a task and finish group have met to model the formula used to allocate DSG from 2018/19 and 2019/20. Using up to date census data, the model achieves the minimum funding levels per pupil by scaling factors each year, with a view to moving to the Hard Implementation by 2020/21. The model proposes that Secondary schools will adopt the NFF Age Weighted Pupil Units (AWPU) from the outset, whilst for Primary schools it will reduce year by year. Vote – that Forum adopts the model proposed by working party with amendments agreed today: In Favour: 10 Against: 0 Abstain: 1


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Members were in agreement that this model be shared with schools immediately. It is felt that this represents a good outcome in very difficult circumstances, but recognise ongoing problems. Roger Hughes, Chair, requested that an additional breakdown of the Formula for 2020/21, showing the adoption of the Hard Formula, be included on future reports. Members noted that no formula has been modelled for Specialist provisions as yet, this is due to a lack of information available nationally at present. Action – Finance colleagues to include 2020/21 formula on future

reports.

7. Feedback on individual child placements As requested at a previous Forum, Rachael Williams shared with members a deeper analysis of joint funded placements. It is recognised that work being done by education staff in attending permanency panels and tracker meetings have led to a reduction in the contributions from Education. The Forum notes the findings of the report, and requests that updates are presented to forum on a half yearly basis, as well as sharing the report at the Higher Needs recovery group. Action – Rachael Williams to share analysis with Higher Needs

recovery group.

8. Schools Forum Operation and Good Practice Guide September 2017 The latest version of the Schools Forum Good Practice Guide was discussed by members. To comply with recommendations made in the guide, it was agreed to include contact details for both Roger Hughes, as Chair, and Rachael Williams, as Head of Education, to future agendas and minutes, and to compile an up to date list of members contact details, to be circulated to all members. Action – Mike Freeman to add Roger Hughes and Rachael Williams

contact details to future agendas and minutes. Action – Mike Freeman to update Members contact details, and

circulate to all members.

9. Response to Audit A response written by the head of Education and Schools Forum Chair, on behalf of members to the audit of Schools Forum, was discussed. The response takes into consideration members feelings that the meeting attended by Devon Audit


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Partnership was perhaps not a true reflection of usual Forum meetings. It is felt that attendance at a variety of Forum meetings would better reflect the level of engagement of members. Members note the findings of the audit, and agree with the Forums response. Action – Mike Freeman and Rachael Williams to update Terms of

Reference, updating members’ roles and responsibilities. Action – Mike Freeman to ensure that future minutes accurately

reflect the detailed discussions held at meetings. Action – Mike Freeman to update Schools Forum webpage, ensuring

links are correct and all information is readily available. Action - Mike Freeman to create an Audit Action Plan.

10. Plymouth Partnership Andy Dempsey, Director of Children’s Services, presented to Forum an update on the ongoing contractual partnership with Plymouth Children’s Services. Some background to the decision making process was shared with members, including the decision to appoint John Coughlan, Chief Executive of Hampshire County Council, as Commissioner of Children’s Service, to act in an advisory role for a period of 12 months. There is currently a restructure of the Senior Leadership Team in Plymouth, but the partnership aims to be in place from 1st April. It is anticipated that there will be no changes to working in the immediate phase, however a new joint Director of Children’s Services will be appointed by Plymouth. Members raised a number of questions regarding the partnership. Some of these questions were not answered as it is not currently known how things will progress until the plans are developed. Key areas raised by Forum were the visibility of the DCS in the new arrangement, the governance arrangements of the partnership and the added benefit to the local area and education sector. Forum Members are committed to making this an effective partnership and want to ensure the education community plays an appropriate role in getting this off to a good and positive start. Whilst initial feedback from the commissioner has been very positive, members feel that it is important to articulate what the partnership model will look like moving forward, and would like more clarity on the advantages of the model. Action – Andy Dempsey to speak to John Coughlan, and flag up the

need for clarity.

Please note – this item was bought forward on the agenda, due to AD having to attend another meeting. This discussion took place after agenda item 6.


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11. Items for next meeting

Financial Report

Recovery Plan

High Cost Pupils Report (Every March and October)

Update on ALFEY funds

Permanent Exclusion Data, including recovery of funds from excluding schools (Every March and October)

Post Audit Action Plan

12. Future meeting dates

8th March 2018, Mezzanine 3, Tor Hill House, 09:00

14th June 2018, Venue TBA

11th October 2018, Venue TBA

29th November 2018, Venue TBA

17th January 2019, Venue TBA

7th March 2019, Venue TBA


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Schools Forum - 8th March 2018

Financial Report

The following report contains a detailed breakdown of the financial position of the local area for 2017/2018.

The report enables members to note the outturn position and the significant factors contributing towards the

spend. The report covers the following items

Outturn position 17/18

Contextual information regarding Early Years Block

Contextual information regarding Higher Needs Block

Reserve funds

DSG allocation for 2018/2019

Position and recommendations

Outturn Position 2017/2018

Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG) funded activities are currently forecast to overspend by £947,000. You

will be pleased to note that the position although still significant is more positive than the anticipated

£1.217m reported to Forum in January 2018.

The following table details the main areas of both over and under spend. Many of these budgets are

demand led and each line is being monitored consistently and revisions reported accordingly.

Budget Heading Budget Actuals to date

Projected Spend

Over / (Under) Spend

Early Years 2, 3 & 4 yr olds £6m £4.534m £5.82m (£180k)

Early Years - ALFEY £220k £209k £224k £4k

Early Years – Pupil Premium & Disability Access Fund

£126k £53k £85k (£41k)

Joint Funded Placements £500k £440k £500k £0k

Recovery of funding from Excluded Pupils £0 (£94k) (£170k) (£170k)

Independent Special School Fees £2.1m £2.180m £2.4m £300k

Other packages for statemented / EHCP pupils / recoupment from other authorities

£164k £128k £349k £185k

Medical Tuition Service / Virtual School / Hospital Tuition

£908k £940k £999k £91k

School contingencies (Rates, planned pupil growth etc)

£315k £219k £220k (£95k)

Statementing / EHCP in-year adjustments (see separate paper for detail)

£200k £333k £357k £157k

Special Schools / High Needs in-year adjustments

£244k £1m £1.107m £863k

School Intervention / Commissioning £324k £200k £243k (£81k)

Other – Early Years Team / Admissions / Portage / Business Support / EAL

(£86k)

The area of significant volatility continues to be within the Higher Needs Block.

Agenda Item 4

Early Years Block Overview

Since the previous forum meeting the local authority has now conducted the official January census and

received all providers (including schools) information. This has enabled accurate rather than predicted

figures to be used.

The take up of all statutory offers within early years remains high.

2 year old offer 71%

3 and 4 year old 15 hours

100%

3 and 4 year old 30 hours offer

92%

Until the Local Authority is in receipt of the actual claims for the spring term, the position taken by the

officers is to apply the formula that all named children on the forecasting information will take up their full

entitlement, an example of this is budgeting for a child to receive 30 hours and a parent only taking 24

hours. On receipt of the census information we have now applied the accurate allocations. This has

resulted in the Early Years Block having an identified underspend of £180k.

Officers have worked hard to understand any recoupment that may occur from the Department for

Education and this is reflected in the figure. However members should treat the final position statement with

caution as the adjustment figure is difficult to predict from the DfE.

The anticipated overspend in the Early Years ALFEY budget has also been well managed. In this

academic year a new process of allocating ALFEY funds by a panel including officers and providers has

been instigated. The full impact of the ALFEY work can be noted in agenda item 6. The work has resulted

in the budget being broadly in line with the allocation.

The position demonstrates in the financial year the early years block will come in on budget and the surplus

funds can be used to offset some of the early years budget overspend last year. Enabling those reserve

funds allocated last year to be used for the overspend this year.

Higher Needs Overview

Torbay continues to have a greater number of children requiring additional support up to and including a

special school place than the funds available in the higher needs block can meet. This demand pressures

is in the great majority driven by schools requesting additional support and/or that children are assessed for

an education health and care plan (EHCP).

The full analysis of Higher Needs Costs and placements is included in Agenda Item 7.

The work of the Higher Needs Recovery Group so far, has focused on a diagnostic approach to identifying

high cost areas and potential mechanisms for change.

In addition to these placements there continues to be an increase in the request for additional funds above

the £6,000 allocated to schools. The following table indicates the position to date.

Statementing / Education, Health & Care Plan Funding for 16/17 & 17/18

16/17 17/18 Increase /

(Decrease)

Number of pupils with a statement 362 373 11.00

Number of FTE's with a statement 334 353 19.00

£ £ £

Funding below £6k allocated through school formula elements 1,914,223 2,047,279 133,056

Funding above £6k allocated as a top-up per eligible pupil 926,146 1,234,164 308,018

Statementing / EHCP Contingency 238,400 200,000 (38,400)

In-Year adjustments

April 110,476 25,735 (84,741)

May 23,628 45,249 21,621

June 19,756 13,913 (5,843)

July 8,445 0 (8,445)

August 114,700 127,405 12,705

September 63,804 40,866 (22,938)

October 34,132 32,141 (1,991)

November (4,951) 6,622 11,573

December 19,419 27,323 7,904

January (11,636) 14,088 25,724

February 22,423 22,423 0

March 1,663 1,663 0

Total - In-Year adjustments 401,859 357,428

Projected (underspend) / overspend 163,459 157,428

Notes

Based on April 17 to Jan 18 in-yr adjustments and the same allocation for the remainder of the financial year as 16/17, it is anticipated the statementing / EHCP contingency will overspend by

£157,428

Reserve Funds

The reserve funds remains unchanged from the October 2017 forum. The following table demonstrates

how the reserve fund has been used and the uncommitted reserves that remain available to forum for

consideration.

DSG Allocation 2018/2019

Following the Forums decision in January 2018 to allocate the DSG using the agreed mechanism, all

schools have received their notification of budgets.

Local Authority officers have received few enquirers regarding this allocation and it was reported that

people appreciated the positive communications that were sent about the Forum decision making.

Special School Allocations were raised at the previous forum. The current allocation being provided to

special schools is confirmed below.

DSG reserve

Balance

Over / (Under)

£

Balance remaining as at end of financial year 15/16 (1,289,211)

Expenditure during 16/17

Schools Safeguarding Social Worker (Year 3) - Mayfield School 50,000

Business Support for TESS - Mayfield School 15,000

Additional TESS funding - agreed at Schools Forum 40,000

Inspiring Equality in Education (Homophobia) - agreed at 10/3/16 Schools Forum 6,173

Improving outcomes - D Pritchard 12,206

CAMHS School Support Service 167,939

16/17 DSG overspend 834,603

Total 16/17 Expenditure 1,125,921

Balance remaining as at end of financial year 16/17 (163,290)

Vacancy saving for Head of Vulnerable Pupils (Apr - Aug 17) (28,300)

Social care contribution towards TESS 17/18 (50,000)

Social care contribution towards TESS 18/19 (50,000)

Contribution from Troubled Families Grant - agreed by DCS (200,000)

Total funding available in DSG reserve (491,590)

Funding still to be allocated against the balance

Transitional funding to enable Early Years funding rate to remain at £4 per hr for 17/18 153,900

CAMHS funding still to allocate in 17/18 (Apr - Aug 17 only) 73,000

TESS in 17/18 Financial Year 41,753

TESS in 18/19 (Apr - Aug only) 72,483

Autism until 31/12/17 66,890

Challenging Behaviour in 17/18 Financial Year 0

Challenging Behaviour in 18/19 Financial Year 54,663

Challenging Behaviour in 19/20 Financial Year (Summer Term only) 31,738

Total Funding still to be allocated against current remaining balance 494,427

Total Over / (Under) spend 2,837

Note:

Unspent balance for Challenging Behaviour held by Watcombe Primary at 31/8/17 (65,943)

Unspent balance for TESS held by Mayfield School at end of 16/17 Financial Year (122,415)

SPECIAL SCHOOL FUNDING ALLOCATIONS 18/19 Number

of agreed Places

Number of

Pupils Jan 18

Funding per

Place £

Top-up per

pupil above

£10k per place

£

Total Place

Funding £

Total Pupil

Funding £

Other Funding

£

Total Funding

£

Type of Place

Combe Pafford Autism 38 54 10,000 4,726 380,000 255,204 635,204 BESD 1 19 21 10,000 5,240 190,000 110,040 300,040 SLD 2 6 10,000 5,127 20,000 30,762 50,762 Hearing 2 2 10,000 5,014 20,000 10,028 30,028 MLD 1 63 47 10,000 507 630,000 23,829 653,829 MLD 2 53 41 10,000 1,291 530,000 52,931 582,931 MLD 3 27 27 10,000 2,337 270,000 63,099 333,099 PD 9 13 10,000 4,726 90,000 61,438 151,438 SpecLD 4 2 10,000 2,281 40,000 4,562 44,562 SLCN 32 35 10,000 4,575 320,000 160,125 480,125 Visual 3 1 10,000 7,858 30,000 7,858 37,858 Additional funding for specific pupils 46,440 46,440 Total 252 249 2,520,000 779,876 46,440 3,346,316

Mayfield & Chestnut PMLD 52 49 10,000 12,046 520,000 590,254 1,110,254 BESD1 – Chestnut 32 33 10,000 10,592 320,000 349,536 669,536 SLD 146 151 10,000 6,452 1,460,000 974,252 2,434,252 Additional funding for specific pupils 35,905 35,905 Other funding (see note) 201,174 201,174 Total 230 233 2,300,000 1,914,042 237,079 4,451,121

Note: Other funding is for Mayfield & Chestnut Outreach, Permanent Exclusions and Occombe House Rent.

Burton & Brunel Brunel – SEMH 56 54 10,000 13,000 560,000 702,000 1,262,000 Burton - Alternative Provision 50 63 10,000 9,500 500,000 598,500 1,098,500 Additional funding for specific pupils 38,083 38,083 Total 106 117 1,060,000 1,300,500 38,083 2,398,583

Overall Total 588 599 5,880,000 3,994,418 321,602 10,196,020

Following the request at Forum, Children’s Services staff pulled together information to demonstrate the

impact of a 1%, 2% or 3% uplift on special school allocations, this was presented to the Finance Officer.

Special Schools have since made further representation to the Authority regarding the need for the uplift in

funding that is experienced by all schools across Torbay.

The following tables demonstrate the modelling of a percentage allocation.

SPECIAL SCHOOL FUNDING ALLOCATIONS 18/19 (modelled with top up)

Type of Place Number of Pupils Jan 18

Top-up per pupil above £10k per place £

Total Pupil Funding £

1% increase in pupil top-up £

2% increase in pupil top-up

3% increase in pupil top-up

Combe Pafford

Autism 54 4,726 255,204 2,552 5,104 7,656

BESD 1 21 5,240 110,040 1,100 2,201 3,301

SLD 6 5,127 30,762 308 615 923

Hearing 2 5,014 10,028 100 201 301

MLD 1 47 507 23,829 238 477 715

MLD 2 41 1,291 52,931 529 1,059 1,588

MLD 3 27 2,337 63,099 631 1,262 1,893

PD 13 4,726 61,438 614 1,229 1,843

SpecLD 2 2,281 4,562 46 91 137

SLCN 35 4,575 160,125 1,601 3,203 4,804

Visual 1 7,858 7,858 79 157 236

Total 249 779,876 7,799 15,598 23,396

Mayfield & Chestnut

PMLD 49 12,046 590,254 5,903 11,805 17,708

BESD1 - Chestnut 33 10,592 349,536 3,495 6,991 10,486

SLD 151 6,452 974,252 9,743 19,485 29,228

Total 233 1,914,042 19,140 38,281 57,421

Burton & Brunel

Brunel - SEMH 54 13,000 702,000 7,020 14,040 21,060

Burton - Alternative Provision

63 9,500 598,500 5,985 11,970 17,955

Total 117 1,300,500 13,005 26,010 39,015

Overall Total 599 3,994,418 39,944 79,888 119,833

School Forum needs to consider the modelling provided and make a decision on special school funding. In

making a positive decision, Members would need to commit to recovering this through the Higher Needs

Recovery Group and ensure this is part of the recovery plan.

Position

The outturn position of the Local Area continues to be of significant concern. The position although

improved in relation to early years, remains volatile based on the higher needs issues.

The provision of £365k provided by the virement of funds from the central block, leaves the School Forum

with a current overspend of £582,000 to recover.

If School Forum make a decision to provide allocation funds to Special Schools based on the modelling

above this would be added to the total above.

Recommendation

It is requested that Schools Forum

1. Note the financial position and continue to work with the Local Authority through the mechanism of the

Higher Needs Recovery Group to create a financial recovery plan.

2. School Forum to consider the Special School allocation and make a decision regarding any uplift in

funding.

Rachael Williams

Head of Education, Learning and Skills


Higher Needs Recovery Group

Context

In January 2018 School Forum agreed to establish a Higher Needs Recovery Group to deal with the

significant issues being placed on this funding block.

The group has been established and one meeting of the group has taken place. The meeting was well

attended.

Board Members

For your information the board members are as follows

Roger Hughes Chair of School Forum /TAPS

Adam Morris Headteacher, Watcombe Primary

Ken Kies CEO Coast Academies

Sandra Wright Headteacher Chestnut

Julie Chubb Financer Manager, Brixham College

Steven Hulme Headteacher, Burton Academy

Mike Lock Headteacher, Combe Pafford

Mark Eager Headteacher, Birxham College

Stephen Kings CEO, Bay Education Trust

Brian Chapman SENCO, Paignton Academy

John Demeger SENCO, South Devon College

Sam Meyer SENCO, Oldway

Siobhan Grady Clinical Commissioning Group

Daniel Hamer Head of Vulnerable Pupils

Rachael Williams Head of Education, Learning and Skills

Andy Dempsey Director of Children’s Services

Rob Parr Children’s Services Finance Officer

Jayne Pollard Finance Assistant

Dorothy Hadleigh Head of SEND

Matthew Gifford Project Officer SEND

Sheena Wright Head of Service Early Years

Amanda White Head of Specialist Services

Gail Rogers Children’s Commissioner and Interim YOT Manager

First Meeting

The meeting revisited the terms of reference to ensure a collective understanding of the brief and ensured

that all of the necessary operational issues such as communication and confidentiality were addressed.

The majority of the meeting focused on two presentations and the agreement of priority areas for action.

The first presentation gave an overview of the current demand within the system, detailing the number of

pupils requiring both EHCP and SEN support. These figures were then further extracted to identify primary

needs and types of provision. The figures were set against national benchmarks.

The second presentation gave an overview of the higher needs budget and the spend against each area of

activity. This enables members to have a full appreciation of the diverse provisions that are funded through

the higher needs block and the types of support children and young people require.

Agenda Item 5

The information was deemed to be useful by members and a further list of additional requirements was

generated.

From the discussion it was noted that Torbay has some unique characteristics in relation to Social

Emotional and Mental Health (SEMH) and Moderate Learning Difficulties (MLD). Both of these areas need

further exploration.

Next Meeting

The next meeting is due to take place on the 19th April 2018. The meeting will include the information

requested by the group in relation to statistical neighbours and comparison data.

The agenda will also focus heavily on pupil flows through the education system, linked to permanent and

fixed term exclusions.

Rachael Williams

Head of Education, Learning and Skills

Schools Forum 8th March 2018 Alfey Funding Report ___________________________________________________

In the new academic year September 2017 to August 2018 a new format was introduced for

allocating the SEN Inclusion Fund; known as Alfey Funding. Previously the fund was managed by

the Early Years Inclusion Advisory Teacher but it was agreed that this role needed to change and a

panel was formed to allocate and manage the funding.

Alongside these changes, the budget for the funding was also increased to accommodate the

evident need for increased and ongoing SEN support in Early Years settings, as well as the

implementation of the extended entitlement seeing children in settings for more hours. The

following changes have been made to the process:

The introduction of an ALFEY panel who meet 6 times per year at set dates and times with a

strict deadline for applications to be submitted prior to each panel.

The panel consists of representatives from the Early Years’ Service (including an officer without

an early years/education background) and external representatives from the PVI sector.

A cease date, one calendar year from the initial application, is given (unless an earlier cease

date is considered appropriate)

Applications will be renewed and reviewed by the panel each year from the date of the initial

allocation

If funding needs to continue after the cease date, providers must submit a new application to the

panel prior to the cease date

The panel operates a robust assessment process of individually assessing applications against the

funding criteria document. The panel then discusses each case during the session and agrees a

score for each child. The panel has also, in some cases, declined to allocate funding and referred

the application back to the provider. This would either be with an accompanying request for further

information which could be considered at the next panel, or with reasons for the rejection. Where

an application is considered to lack sufficient information, but there is clear evidence of a level of

need, the panel will allocate low level funding for a short period of time (i.e. one or two terms) and

request that the provider reapplies with a more robust application.

This score allocated to the child dictates how much additional funding the setting will receive for

the child. The scores are set out below:

ALFEY Score % of hourly rate received £ hourly rate received

1 20% £1.80

2 40% £3.60

3 60% £5.40

4 80% £7.20

5 100% £9.00

Agenda Item 6

Below is a table which outlines the number of children in receipt of ALFEY Funding across the

academic year (note the changes were introduced for the autumn term):

Term Number of children Term Total £

Summer 2017 97 £82,889.64

Autumn 2017 72 £62,798.40

Spring 2018 82 £69,989.40

Below is a summary of the number of children in each score bracket for each term:

Score Number of children

Summer 2017

Number of children

Autumn 2017

Number of children

Spring 2018

1 7 6 6

2 24 29 42

3 38 20 29

4 25 16 16

5 3 1 1

This is compared to the last financial year 2016-17:

Term Number of children Term Total £

Summer 2016 79 £68,142.96

Autumn 2016 73 £72,598.68

Spring 2017 86 £75,007.44

Score Number of children

Summer 2016

Number of children

Autumn 2016

Number of children Spring

2017

1 4 7 10

2 19 12 16

3 37 28 32

4 14 22 24

5 5 4 4

The average score allocated has reduced from 2.99 in 2016-17 to 2.87 in 2017-18. The termly

average score breakdown can be found below:

The average spend per child has also decreased:

The Alfey Funding budget will come in on target at the end of the financial year and will not be

overspent.

This is evidence that the impact of the panel on the funding allocation has worked well to ensure

that the funding available is allocated in a clear and transparent way whilst ensuring that the

budget allocation is not exceeded.

2.96 3.052.95

2.93

2.68

3.00

2.40

2.50

2.60

2.70

2.80

2.90

3.00

3.10

S U M M E R 2 0 1 6 A U T U M N 2 0 1 6 S P R I N G 2 0 1 7 S U M M E R 2 0 1 7 A U T U M N 2 0 1 7 S P R I N G 2 0 1 8

ALFEY FUNDING AVERAGE SCORE

£862.57

£994.50

£872.18

£854.53

£872.20

£853.53

£750.00

£800.00

£850.00

£900.00

£950.00

£1,000.00

£1,050.00

Summer 2016 Autumn 2016 Spring 2017 Summer 2017 Autumn 2017 Spring 2018

Average spend per child


Analysis of High Cost Placements February 2018

The purpose of this report is to provide an update to the report submitted in October 2017 relating to the detailed analysis of the high cost placements being commissioned by the local area. Torbay has a historically high rate of Statements/Education, Health and Care plans, and the request for assessments continues to grow. We currently have 1275 Statements/ Education, Health and Care Plans. (Oct 2017-1265). This is 4.5% of the Torbay pupil population. (2.8% nationally and 3.2% statistical neighbours). There has been a 64% increase in requests for new assessments since 2013/14. The SEND panel consisting of multi agency representation continues to be diligent in threshold application, this resulted in 18% of applications not meeting threshold. The trajectory for new requests continues to rise, in this academic year there has been 107 requests received between September 2017 to the end of January 2018. The following table shows the new requests for statutory assessment by Academic year and the conversion rates for agreement/refusal.

Sept 13 – Aug 14 Sept 14 – Aug 15 Sept 15 – Aug 16 Sept 16 – Aug 17

Requests for Statutory

Assessment

133 161 175 216

RSAs refused 18 (14%) 21 (13%) 42 (24%) 40 (18%)

RSAs agreed 115 (86%) 142 (87%) 135 (77%) 176 (82%)

The complexity of the needs of the children and young people sometimes requires specialist provision

which requires access to in house placements in enhanced resource provisions and special schools within

Torbay, and also accessing specialist provisions within the vicinity of Torbay/ surrounding authorities, or

further afield. The special schools in Torbay are now full and all places have also been allocated for

September 2018.

Combe Pafford January 2018 September 2018

Pre 16 202 202

Post 16 50 50

Mayfield

Pre 16 198 198

Post 16 32 32

Brunel 56 56

Agenda Item 7

Bespoke Packages

In cases where there has been a need to develop bespoke packages to meet the complex needs of

students, there has been a growth in the use of alternative providers. These packages range from the

short term interim arrangements to long term provision as part of a bespoke package to maintain the

student within an educational placement. All of these are closely monitored and reviewed on a 6 weekly

basis by the SEN Casework Officer, and in some cases these are in conjunction with the student remaining

on roll at a school and part attendance. These packages are ceased in cases where we do not feel there is

engagement or noticeable impact.

The range of provisions we use has remained consistent since the last report submitted to Schools Forum.

The projected total cost for these bespoke packages during this financial year is £344,000.

Independent Placements

These placements are used in cases where no other provision within Torbay is appropriate. All options are

explored prior to agreeing to this option being authorised. There has also been an increase in these during

the last year.

January 15 January 16 January 17 October

2017

January 17

Independent /Non Maintained Specials

34 36 31 46

57

Post 16

The number of Post 16 placements once again continues to be a significant pressure – this is also a

growing area of need due to changes in the legislation, and will continue to be so. In the last year a Post 16

Working Group has been formed to start to consider these issues and how outcomes and value for money

judgements can be made.

POST 16

Total No Total Cost (£)- Education

Devon School (Cambian) 1 17,100

Dawlish Garden Trust 1 6,240

Eat That Frog 22 183,168

Liverpool Progressive School 1 19,986

Foxes Academy 2 46,987

Dame Hannah/ Seale Hayne 2 28,551

Oakwood Court College (Phoenix) 6 220,114

Lifeworks 1 34,229

On Track 7 114,277

Robert Owen Communities 6 52,000

ERADE 1 42,670

St Piers, Lingfield 1 29,071

WESC 2 42,710

South Devon College 104 1,260,000

Combe Pafford Post 16 50 601,458

Mayfield Post 16 32 576,810

Close scrutiny of these placements is continuous, and funding contributions from Adult Services have been sought where appropriate. We have also ceased some placements where the student has not engaged, and evidence of outcomes and progress are not clearly apparent. Joint funded placements

The educational contribution to joint funded places currently stands at £500k for this current financial year.

A full report was brought to School Forum in January 2018. Since October 2017 Education and Social Care have placed 2 students out of area, where places were negotiated in neighbouring maintained special schools. This partnership working meant that costly out of area placements in independent schools were avoided for these students. Conclusion

Continuing pressures on the high needs budget remain, for all of the reasons stated in the previous report.

The recent development of the Higher Needs Funding Group will look in detail how this can be addressed

in the medium to long term.

Dorothy Hadleigh

February 2018


Permanent and Fixed Term Exclusion Analysis

Introduction

This is the fourth report of permanent exclusions and fixed term exclusion occurring in the Local Area

across all phases and provisions. The report sets out to provide an overall picture of the local trends over a

period of time and the most recent intelligence held by the Local Authority.

This is the first report since the introduction of the new protocol for Secondary School permanent

exclusions. The Torbay protocol states that:

Students on their first permanent exclusion will be placed at Burton but will not enter that facility.

First permanent exclusion students will go straight to a parental preference managed move to

mainstream.

Second permanent exclusion students will transfer into Burton for intervention work before being

considered for reintegration

The report provides no solutions, but is vital evidence for the Higher Needs Recovery Group to consider

and action as part of the agreed plan.

Historical Data, Compared to National and Statistical Neighbours

The number of permanent exclusions has risen significantly since 2013/2014. Although this mirrors a

national trend, pupils attending a Torbay Secondary School are more likely to be excluded than the national

group and our statistical neighbours. Of particular concern is the higher proportion of students with SEN

and /or who are open to Social Care who are excluded. There is also a significant challenge in our rate of

increase in permanent exclusions which far exceeds that of our statistical neighbours.

Permanent Exclusions

2013/14 2014/15 2015/16 2016/17

2017/18 To Date

Primary 3 2 6 4 4

Secondary 10 14 23 27 27

Special 0 0 3 1 1

Total 13 16 32 32 32

Pri

mar

y

Pri

mar

y So

c C

are

Pri

mar

y SE

N

Seco

nd

ary

Seco

nd

ary

SC

Seco

nd

ary

SEN

Spe

cial

Spe

cial

SC

Spe

cial

SEN

4 1 1 (2) 27 6 8 1 0 1Number of Students PEX

2016/17 to Jan 31st

Agenda Item 8

Fixed term

In addition to the increased number of permanent exclusions there has also been a significant increase in

the number of days missed from school through issuing fixed term exclusions. For the purpose of the report

a comparison is provided for the Autumn term over three years.

Aut 2015 Aut 2016 Aut 2017 2016/17 17/18 to

Date

Primary 129 days 125 days 152.5 days 394 days 191.5 days Secondary

266.5 days 382.5 days 352.50 days

1372.5 days

471 days

Special 99.5 days 135 days 70.50 days 336 days 145 days

The following charts demonstrates the number of pupils that have been excluded that are known to social

care and SEN services.

Note: Although the data shows 1SEN student with a PEX, 2 of the others are being considered under

RSA’s.

Pri

mar

y

Pri

mar

y So

c C

are

% Pri

mar

y SE

N

% Seco

nd

ary

Seco

nd

ary

SC

% Seco

nd

ary

SEN

% Spe

cial

Spe

cial

SC

% Spe

cial

SEN

%

35 9 26% 24 69% 123 12 10% 40 33% 70 0 0% 51 73%

23 5 22% 19 83% 47 6 13% 22 47% 32 0 0% 24 75%

4 1 25% 1 25% 27 6 22% 8 30% 1 0 0% 1 100%

Number of Students FTE

Number of Students >1 FTE

Number of Students PEX

2016/17 to Jan 31st

The analysis above demonstrates that:

1. SEN students are far more likely to be excluded for a fixed term than their peers. 2. They are also more likely to have repeated fixed term exclusions in Primary school. 3. Children open to Social Care are more likely than their peers to be excluded and this rate of

disadvantage is accelerating compared to our statistical neighbours.

Autumn Term 2017 Permanent Exclusions

The Local Authority continues to monitor permanent exclusions. Since taking up his post Dan Hamer (Head of Vulnerable Pupils) has begun to request additional information following the notification to the Local Authority. This has enabled the Local Authority to question decisions and also ensure that the next provision is carefully considered. The evidence presented by schools continues to be of varying quality and a communication regarding the types of information required has been sent to schools.

The following charts demonstrates the number of permanent and fixed term exclusions issued in the autumn term 2017 by phase. For the fixed term exclusions there is a comparison provided to Summer 2017 data.

Primary Permanent Exclusions- Autumn 2017

2 primary schools permanently excluded 4 pupils this term for Persistent Disruptive Behaviour. One is open to Social Care and One is SEN (see note above).

Secondary Permanent Exclusions – Autumn 2017

6 secondary schools permanently excluded 27 pupils. The category of exclusion is recorded below. Out of

the 27 pupils 6 were known to Social Care

Assault on an Adult

Assault on a Pupil

Drug and Alcohol

PD Behaviour

Racist Abuse

Verbal Abuse of and Adult

Verbal Abuse of a

Pupil

No. 1 5 5 8 1 4 3

Primary Fixed Term Exclusions –Autumn 2017

23 primary schools have issued one or more fixed term exclusion during the Autumn Term.

Type Summer 17 Autumn 17

Assault on Pupil 12 13

Assault on adult 34 43

Persistent disruptive behaviour 15 6

Verbal abuse of adults 6 2

Verbal abuse of pupils 1 1

Total 73 65

Secondary Fixed Term Exclusions –Autumn 2017

8 secondary schools have issued one or more fixed term exclusion during the Autumn Term.





Bullying 7 1



Sexual Misconduct 2 5

Drug and alcohol 9 10

Damage 6 1

Racist Abuse 1 1

Theft 2 5

Other 14 15

Total 186 161

It should be noted that although there has been a reduction in fixed term exclusions compared to the summer term, there has been a rise in permanent exclusions

Special School Fixed Term Exclusions –Autumn 2017

3 special schools have issued one or more fixed term exclusion during the Autumn Term.







Drug and alcohol 10 9

Damage 8 1

Theft 1 0

Racist Abuse 0 1

Bullying 0 0

Other 3 8

Total 87 80

Spring Term – Until 31st January 2018

The number of both permanent and fixed term exclusions has stabilised within the term. For the period 1st to 31st January 2018 the figures are:

There has been a limited flow back into mainstream provision and it has become increasingly challenging

for the Pupil Referral Panel to make managed moves take place and for the outcome to remain positive.

This is starting to show signs of improving through the hard work of the Challenging Behaviour Group in a

meeting on 31st January. The schools represented in this group have identified 19 students who have left,

or will imminently leave Burton provision. This will create space for the provision to take in excluded

students and undertake some limited assessment work,

Recommendation

It is recommended that Forum note the report and ask the Higher Needs Recovery Group to consider this

in depth.

Fixed Term Permanent

Primary 29.5 days 3

Secondary 60 days 5

Special 10 days 0

Au

dit

Re

f

What? (as per Devon Audit Partnership report) Who?

Task

Nu

mb

er

TaskBy

WhenSuccess Measures Status Priority Comments

1.1.1 Terms of reference should be completed in order to define the

purpose and structure of the Torbay Schools Forum. It should

contain clear and specific information on how the forum is

organised and what they are trying to achieve.

RW 1 Re-name the document to "Standing Orders and Terms of

Reference" and review to include all items listed are

included.

Mar-18 Terms of Reference and Standing Orders

define the purpose and structure of the

School Forum and enables members to

know how it is organised and the overall

aim.

High Terms of References have been

updated.

1.2.1 Forum members should be proactive in raising the profile of

issues from their represented group within the forum

meetings. Discussions regarding any issues/questions etc.

from their represented group should be raised at the forum

meetings and recorded in the minutes for review. To ensure

responsibilities and processes for communication with

represented groups are clear they should be set out in Terms

of Reference.

RW/MF 2 Ensure the review of the terms of Reference takes into

consideration the recommendations that a members

responsibility will be to seek the views of their group.

Ensure that the minutes reflect the detailed discussions

conducted at the meeting.

Mar-18 School Forum should be aware of the views

of stakeholders through their

representatives at Forum. The questions

and issues raised by members will be

accuratley minuted. The role of Forum

Members will be understood through the

inclusion of responsibilities through the

Terms of Reference and Standing Orders

document.

High Terms of Refence have been updated

to inlcude the roles and responsiblities

of Forum Members to consult with

their represented group. Minutes are

becoming increasingly detailed. This

needs to be monitored over time.

1.3.1 The meeting minutes should clearly record the level of

challenge and discussion of each of the agenda items. They

should provide a sense of the discussions held and the options

presented at the meeting to non-attendees and then clearly

record the conclusions and action agreed in relation to each of

the agenda items.

MF 3 Ensure that minutes provide more detailed summaries of

points raised in discussions leading to a decision.

Jan-18 Minutes accurately reflect the full discussion

that has taken place at the Forum.

High Minutes of the forum held in January

18 demonstrated greater detail. This

needs to be monitored over time.

1.4.1 Clear votes should be taken in relation to recommendations

and decisions. To ensure clarity in the voting process it is

important to document the procedures for making decisions.

There is the opportunity or include these as part of the Forum

Terms of Reference

RH/MF 4 Ensure voting procedures remain in the revised standing

orders and Terms of Reference. Use voting more often and

record outcomes in minutes.

Jan-18 Voting is used to take forward

recommendations and decisions for all

relevant matters. Standing Orders include

voting procedures.

High Voting continues to be used at Forum

Meetings and the group need to

challenge and review if this is being

used as frequently as needed.

1.5.1 Due to a significant increase on a forecast overspend an

urgent/unscheduled meeting should have been called by

Schools Forum. Leaving the discussions until the June meeting

has meant that there was insufficient time for the Forum to

make a decision, and a working group had to set up to manage

and make decisions required on the overspend. In addition,

due to the known overspend issue that needed to be

discussed, and as an urgent meeting had not been scheduled,

extra time should have been allocated to this meeting and

advanced notice given to ensure that all members of the

forum could attend the entire meeting.

RW/RH 5 The Local Authority to notify the Chair in the circumstances

of significant and unexpected events. Chair to consider

email discussion or an extra meeting. Indicate anticipated

length of the meeting on the agenda.

As

needed

Extrodinary meetings and e-mails will be

used to cascade information between

meetings where appropriate.

High No items have required this to be used.

However the process is understood

and would be enacted.

1.6.1 It is recommended that the more long term budget

projections are developed and requested from the LA for

monitoring by the Forum. This will enable the Forum to

scrutinise future budgets and identify savings in the long term,

therefore avoiding having to make immediate budget

decisions as is currently required.

RW/

members of

the Working

Party.

6 The Forum is calling together a working party to develop and

monitor a Recovery Plan for costs associated with High

Needs Pupils.

Apr-18 Longer term budget forecasting are in place

and can used by the Higher Needs Recovery

Group.

High Trajectory work has started to be

conducted by the LA and will form part

of the agenda for the Higher Needs

Recovery Group.

Agenda Item

11

1.7.1 The Forum members should be communicating the budget

pressures with the educational groups they are representing

and reporting any feedback at Forum meetings. By including

the Local area, ideas, savings and opportunities can be

identified and discussed at Forum meetings, which could

contribute to balanced budgets and prepare for the possibility

of the hard funding blocks in the future. For example, Forum

members have identified that the area of pupil exclusions are

well managed within some schools without the need for a

pupil placement, which can be very costly. By identifying and

sharing areas of good practice the local area community could

potentially contribute to the better management of budgets

within the individual funding blocks.

RW/

members of

the Working

Party.

7 The Higher needs Recovery Group Terms of Reference will

include the identification of good practice.

Mar-18 School Forum are able to find solutions

through the identification and

implementation of good practice.

High Higher Needs Recovery Group

identfied good practice and value for

money examples at a local secondary

school. This will continue to be a focus

of the group.

1.8.1 Forum members should be reporting back to their

represented areas to ensure good open channels of

communication are being achieved. The members should

report that needs to be achieved, decisions made and the

outcomes of the Forum meetings. By involving the educational

community it means that they are aware of the budget

pressures being faced and potentially how they could

contribute to ideas to address any future overspend. The good

practice guide includes how the Forum members could

consider communicating with the community. It is a

requirement that information relating to the schools forum is

publicly available.

RW/RH 8 Re-name the document to "Standing Orders and Terms of

Reference" and review to include all items listed are

included.

Mar-18 Mechanisms for communication ensure that

all schools and stakeholders are aware of

the work of Forum and the situations that

are being addressed.

High Education Newsletter in place that will

be cascaded to Heads, Governors and

wider stakeholders. This will inlcude an

update from the forum chair. Forum

chair is sharing a communication

straight after the meeting with all

Headteachers.

1.9.1 The Schools Forum area of the Torbay Council website should

be made more accessible and clearly signposted for public

review. All papers, documentation and information regarding

the Forum including its roles and responsibilities and contact

details, as required by the practice guide, should be made

available. Many local authorities' dedicated Schools Forum

websites post key information for members and any other

interested parties and can be reviewed for ideas regarding the

information included on the Torbay Forum.

RW/MF 9 Local Authority to provide a dedicated School Forum Web

page that is accessible and inclusive of all relevant

information.

Sep-18 The website will be accessible and used by

the school community inlcuding governors.

High Minutes and Agendas have been

uploaded and a link sent to where to

find the information. Minutes have

been sent directly to all schools for

cascading and information.

1.10.1 The Forum should take full advantage of all opportunities to

raise the profile of the Schools Forum and encourage the local

area to engage with them

RW/RH 10 Arrange for Forum members to receive the "Schools Forum

Operation and Good Practice Guide Revised September

2017". Forum to discuss the possible implementation of

other opportunities to raise the profile of its work.

Jan-18 Members have a copy fo the School Forum

Operation and Good Practice Guide and are

acting to seek representation from

colleagues.

High Forum Members received this in

January 18

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